Pottstown man sentenced for bomb threat at college campus

By
Carl Hessler Jr., The Mercury

Monday, July 17, 2017

NORRISTOWN >> A former Pottstown man wants to continue his education but he likely won’t be invited back to the Montgomery County Community College campus in the borough where he scribbled a bomb threat on a note he left in a restroom.

Jeremy Edwin Leach, 28, formerly of the 700 block of Farmington Avenue, pleaded guilty in Montgomery County Court to misdemeanor charges of terroristic threats and false alarm to a public safety agency in connection with the December 2015 incident at the college campus along College Drive.

Judge Thomas C. Branca sentenced Leach to time served to 23 months in jail and gave Leach credit for the time he’s been in jail since March 10, 2016.

With the charges, prosecutors alleged Leach caused the evacuation of the college and created a public inconvenience during the 11:19 a.m. Dec. 3, 2015, incident. Leach, prosecutors said, left a note stating, “Bomb here get out B4 12:30” on the floor of a men’s restroom, according to a criminal complaint.

“Obviously that prompted a good police response and Pottstown officers were quick on the scene and made sure that everyone was safe, evacuated the school and ultimately no bomb was found,” said Assistant District Attorney Richard Bradbury Jr.

“One of the strongest assets that Pottstown has is its police department and emergency services and when those services are being diverted foolishly or incorrectly then obviously the whole community pays a price,” Bradbury added.

Defense lawyer James P. Lyons said Leach is remorseful for his conduct.

“He accepts responsibility for what happened. Obviously he’s remorseful,” Lyons said. “It’s cost him over a year of his life at this point. It wasn’t intended to evacuate the building. It was a joke more than anything, but not very funny. It doesn’t show good foresight.”

Lyons said Leach wants to resume his education and obtain a degree in business management.

“He wants to go back to college. I’m not sure (the community college) will accept him at this point, but he has every intention of getting his bachelor’s degree and his master’s degree and try to seek a position in business,” Lyons added.

When the note was discovered, bomb-sniffing K9 units were brought to the campus and the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Bomb Disposal Unit also responded to the campus, according to a criminal complaint filed by Pottstown Detective Brooke Fisher.

“Video surveillance was obtained from the area of the second floor men’s bathroom,” Fisher wrote in the arrest affidavit, adding Leach was observed around the bathroom at the time the note was left there. “He was only inside the bathroom for about 45 seconds. He could also be seen entering and exiting the bathroom while going through a folder full of papers.”

The investigation determined Leach had an English paper due on Dec. 3. Due to the bomb threat, the English teacher gave her students until Dec. 8 to turn in the paper, Fisher alleged.

Testimony revealed Leach won’t be released immediately from custody as he still has to appear before the Pennsylvania Parole Board on a charge his arrest for the college campus incident represented a violation of the probation or parole he was serving on a 2013 conviction for carrying a firearm without a license in Pottstown. The parole board could impose additional jail time against Leach.